Providing information related to a product unique to a geographical region

ABSTRACT

Generally discussed herein are systems, apparatuses, and methods for providing information regarding a product that is unique to a geographical region. In one or more embodiments a method may include determining a location of a user, receiving information indicative of one or more products unique to a particular geographical region corresponding to the determined location of the user, wherein each of the one or more products are offered for sale in the particular region by one or more merchants, and providing information about at least one of the products and about a merchant, from the one or more merchants, offering that product for sale in the geographical region.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to providing informationrelated to a product or service unique to a geographical region.

BACKGROUND

Tourism is a multibillion dollar industry. People travel to see friends,family, partake in unique recreational activities, and visit historicallandmarks or buildings, among other reasons. People also travel to havea unique cultural experience, to experience things that are unique to aparticular region that they are travelling to.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Some embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not limitation inthe accompanying figures.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a system for providinginformation related to a product unique to a geographical region, inaccord with one or more embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a map that indicates one or morelocations where one or more products unique to a geographical region maybe sold, in accord with one or more embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating another map that indicates one or morelocations where one or more products unique to a geographical region maybe sold, in accord with one or more embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating yet another map that indicates one ormore locations where one or more products unique to a geographicalregion may be sold, in accord with one or more embodiments.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a user interface configured toprovide a user with information related to product unique to ageographical region, in accord with one or more embodiments.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method for providing informationrelated to a product unique to a geographical region, in accord with oneor more embodiments.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a networked system, in accordwith one or more embodiments.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of an example portion of the networked systemof FIG. 7, in accord with one or more embodiments.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of an example computer system for performingany one or more methodologies discussed herein, in accord with one ormore embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Described herein are systems, apparatuses, and methods for providinginformation related to a product unique to a geographical region.Various modifications to the embodiments will be readily apparent tothose skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein maybe applied to other embodiments and applications without departing fromthe scope of the disclosure. Moreover, in the following disclosure,numerous details are set forth for the purpose of explanation. However,one of ordinary skill in the art will realize that one or more of theembodiments may be practiced without the use of some of these specificdetails. In other instances, well-known structures and processes are notshown in block diagram form in order not to obscure the description ofthe example embodiments with unnecessary detail. Thus, the presentdisclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown, butis to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles andfeatures disclosed herein.

Connecting local commerce, such as products that are unique to aparticular geographical region and merchants that sell those products,with a community larger than the community local to the particulargeographical region (e.g., a county, city, town, mountain, river, lake,valley, a state, territory, country, or national, international, orglobal community) is generally a difficult and largely unaddressedproblem. For example, in India, many regions, states, and localitieshave some product that is unique to that area. Thanjavur, a town insouth India, for instance, is popular (at least locally) for dancingdolls, art plates, Veena (a musical instrument), and paintings. Asanother example, Kumbakonam, a town near Thanjavur is popular (at leastlocally) for betel leaves and filter coffee, among other items. However,most of these things are unknown to many people outside these respectivegeographical regions. People who travel to these places may be unawareof these unique products that, in many instances, cannot be found and/orare not produced elsewhere.

There are many items that are either truly unique (e.g., exclusive) to aparticular region (e.g., Champagne from the region of Champagne inFrance) or are unique in that they are noteworthy for being of a higherquality than a similar product from another region. These items may bedesignated as geographically unique by a formal GeographicIdentification (GI) tag (e.g., a GI tag as designated in the ParisConvention, the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of IntellectualProperty Rights (TRIPS), the Lisbon Agreement on the Protection ofAppellations of Origin and their Registration, appellation d'originecontrolee (AOC) in France, a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), theProtected Geographical Indication (PGI), Traditional SpecialtiesGuaranteed as in European Union (EU) law, the concept of terroir, or ina trademark or tradename), or identified as geographically unique bymining data to determine the origin of a good or service that may beconsidered somehow unique or popular in a specific geographical region.

The protection afforded by a GI may be similar to the protectionafforded by a trademark or a certification mark. A GI mark is generallyrestricted to use on a product that originates, is made from materials,or is made using methods of manufacture that originate from a specificregion. Some GI marks require certain quality standards to be met or theproduct to pass certain quality tests in order for the GI mark to beused on a product. A GI mark generally helps a consumer by acting as asort of guarantee that the product with the GI mark is consistent withother products that also bear the mark.

Products with GI marks are generally produced by communities that havegained a reputation for one or more products with a specific quality.The protection afforded by a GI mark may help allow a producer to investin retaining the specific qualities which form the basis for thereputation. A GI mark may also help a producer in marketing the product.A GI mark may help preserve a tradition or know-how.

One or more embodiments discussed herein may help in promoting orproviding access to a product unique to a particular geographical region(e.g., a product that is protected by a GI, trademark, or tradename, ora product that is known to be from a particular geographical region andincludes one or more properties unique to that geographical region).

Reference will now be made to the FIGS. to describe more details ofembodiments.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a system 100 for providinginformation related to a product unique to a geographical region, inaccord with one or more embodiments. The system 100 may include an inputmodule 102, a location determination module 104, a product determinationmodule 106, one or more databases 108A or 108B, a rank module 110,and/or an output module 112.

In one or more embodiments, the system may include an input module 102.The input module 102 may include a display (e.g., a touch screen ormonitor), a mouse or other navigation or input device, a microphone, orother input device. The input module 102 may include a User Interface(UI), such as the UI shown in FIG. 5. The input module 102 may prompt auser to input a product category, a location, or whether the user isinterested in viewing products that are unique to a location. The inputmay be received through a text box, radio button, push button, checkbox, a group box, a scroll or drop down list, or a user's voice, amongothers. The input module 102 may provide the input data to the locationdetermination module 104, product determination module 106, database(s)108A-B, rank module 110, or the output module 112, for example.

The location determination module 104 may determine a general locationof a user, such as by determining a general location of an objectassociated with a user. The location determination module 104 may useuser input data provided via the input module 102 (e.g., auser-indicated zip code, address, city, state, county, region,territory, country, other location information, or a combinationthereof), a Global Positioning System (GPS), Internet Provider (IP)Access Point (AP) location, cell tower location, WiFi Hot Spot or AccessPoint (AP) location, Bluetooth signal, other technique, or a combinationthereof to help determine a general location of a user. The locationdetermination module 104 may provide the determined location as anoutput. The location may include geographical regions of varying sizes.In some embodiments, the location may include an address, a region(e.g., neighborhood) of a city, a city, a region corresponding to a zipor postal code, a county, multiple cities, one or more states, one ormore countries, a continent, etc. The location may be specified bylatitude and longitude coordinates or similar location data, in one ormore embodiments.

The product determination module 106 may provide a list of products thatincludes one or more unique products. A unique product is a product thatis either truly unique (e.g., exclusive) to a particular region or isunique in that it is noteworthy for being of a higher quality than asimilar product from another region. As used herein, a product coveredby a GI mark is considered a unique product. The list of products may bedetermined using the location of the user, a search term, or acombination thereof. The list of products may be determined by queryingone or more databases 108A-B that list products, including one or moreunique products. For example, the product determination module 106 mayquery the databases 108A-B to retrieve products unique to Napa Valley.In another example, the product determination module 106 may query thedatabases 108A-B to retrieve products (if any) unique to a particularzip code, county, state, city, region of a city, or other geographicalregion. The geographical region may be specified by latitude andlongitude coordinates in one or more embodiments. The latitude andlongitude coordinates may provide a location within a geographicalregion to focus around. The product determination module 106 may providea list of one or more products that match the location and/or the searchterm as an output.

The database(s) 108A-B includes detailed information about a variety ofproducts. For example, the databases(s) 108A-B may include productinformation such as a product name, description, category, image, cost,region/location of origin, whether the product is unique and, if theproduct is unique, under what GI regime the product is registered (ifany), why the product is considered unique (e.g., why the product ispopular or what distinguishes the product from other, similar products),or the like. The database(s) 108A-B may further include merchantinformation associated with a product, such as a merchant name (e.g., abusiness name), address, online and/or offline merchant rating,description, or other merchant information. A product in the database(s)108A-B may be associated with region of origin which can be representedby latitude and longitude coordinates, a zip code, county, state,country, or other region information that conveys a geographical region.The database(s) 108A-B may also include information corresponding to amap of a geographical region associated with the location of the user.The information in the database(s) 108A-B may be organized in a mannerthat makes it searchable using, for instance, a Structured QueryLanguage (SQL) or other search query. The products in the database(s)108A-B may be indexed by region of origin, product category, merchantlocation, and/or a combination thereof, among others.

The information in the database(s) 108A-B regarding whether the productis a GI product, may include information regarding GI productsregistered under the Paris Convention, the Agreement on Trade RelatedAspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), the Lisbon Agreement onthe Protection of Appellations of Origin and their Registration,appellation d'origine controlee (AOC) in France, a Protected Designationof Origin (PDO), the Protected Geographical Indication (PGI), orTraditional Specialties Guaranteed as in European Union (EU) law, theconcept of terroir, or in a trademark or tradename, among others. Thedatabase(s) may include a third-party database of GI products, or thesystem 100 may have access to such a third-party database, for example,through a network (e.g., the Internet).

The rank module 110 may determine an order in which to present theidentified products to a user. The rank module 110 may query thedatabase 108A-B to determine a rating of a merchant associated with aproduct. The rank module 110 may use the merchant rating, a productrating, a cost of the product, and/or other information in determiningthe rank of a product. The rating of the merchant may be a rating fromcustomers who purchased product from the merchant's online or offlinestore. A merchant's online store includes one or more web servicesaccessible over the Internet, through which a user may purchase aproduct. A merchant's offline store is a place with a physical locationthat a user may visit. In one or more embodiments, the rank module 110may rank products based on the ratings of the merchants associatedtherewith, such that are products with higher merchant ratings aredisplayed higher on the list than products with relatively lowermerchant ratings. Alternatively or additionally, in one or moreembodiments, the rank module 110 may rank a unique product higher than anon-unique product. The rank module 110 may filter products based onwhether they are unique and then further rank the unique products basedon a merchant rating associated with the unique product.

The rank module 110 assigns a rank designation to a product (e.g., anumber, letter, or other designation). The rank designation may berepresentative of a sum, a weighted sum, or other combination ofattributes of a product. For example, a product that is consideredunique may include a base rating designation of ten, while a productthat is considered non-unique may include a base rating designation ofzero in an instance where a user indicates they are interested in aunique product. In another example, a product that is associated with amerchant that is rated positively can include a rating designation often, while a product that is considered non-unique may include a ratingdesignation of zero. Similar rating designations can be assigned forother product attributes. The rating designations, or a subset of therating designations, for the product can be summed or otherwise combinedto determine a final rating designation for the product. A product witha final rating designation greater than another product can be rankedhigher by the rank module 110.

The output module 1112 may include a speaker, display, projector, orother device capable of conveying information to a user. The outputmodule 112 may include a Graphical User Interface (GUI) that may displayan image (such as an image similar to the map shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 4, orthe GUI shown in FIG. 5. The output module 112 may convey information toa user in a variety of formats, such as those shown in FIGS. 2-5 or acombination thereof. The output module 112 may provide informationregarding one or more products unique and/or available in a geographicalregion. The output module 112 may query the database(s) for informationto be presented to the user. The output module 112 may receiveinformation form the input module 102, the location determination module104, product determination module 106, database(s) 108A-B, and/or therank module 110, and render an image using the received information.Examples of such functionality are discussed with regard to FIGS. 2-5below.

A variety of use cases of the system 100 will now be presented to aid inunderstanding some of the functionality and/or interaction of themodules and components of the system 100.

In one or more embodiments, a user may be travelling in a foreignlocation. The user may not be aware of products that are unique to theforeign location. The location determination module 104 may determinethe location of the user and provide the determined location to theproduct determination module 106, database(s) 108A-B, the rank module110, and/or the output module 112. In an alternative embodiment, theuser may provide the foreign location using the input module 102. Theproduct determination module 106 may query the database(s) 108A-B usingthe determined or received location to retrieve a list of products thatincludes one or more products unique to the foreign location. The listof products may include information regarding the products, such as amerchant name, address, rating, and/or description of the product. Therank module 110 may rank the products based on the merchant's online oroffline rating, a product rating, a cost of the product, and/or otherinformation. The output module 112 may present the user with a list ofproducts including one or more products unique to the foreign location(e.g., a geographical region including the foreign location). Thus, thesystem 100 may provide a user with insight as to what products areunique to the region and/or possibly worth looking at in more detail.

In one or more embodiments, a user may specify that they are onlyinterested in products unique to the geographical region, indicate aboundary of the geographical region he is interested in, a category ofthe products he is interested in (e.g., clothing, food, drink, weapon,toy, recreational or educational activity, among other categories), oneor more merchants he is interested in visiting, among other details. Theproduct determination module 106 may query the database(s) 108A-B suchthat results returned to the product determination module 106 areconsistent with the user specification(s), or may first obtain a “raw”list of products from the database 108A-B and thereafter filter theresults received from the database 108A-B based on the userspecification(s). The query may be transmitted to the database(s) 108A-Bin a format compatible with the database(s) 108A-B, interpreted by thedatabase(s) 108A-B or circuitry associated with the database(s) 108A-B,and the database(s) 108A-B may return the product(s) that match one ormore of the specifications of the user. For example, if a user specifiesa geographical region he is interested in or a geographical regionassociated with a user's location is specified, the specifiedgeographical region is compared to a region of origin associated withthe product to determine if the product is associated with the specifiedgeographical region. In this manner, products unique to a geographicalregion may be organized and retrieved by geographical location.Similarly, if a user specifies a category of products, the specifiedcategory is compared to the category field of the products in thedatabase(s) 108A-B to determine if the product is a member of thespecified category. Similar comparisons may be made for other fieldsthat can be specified by a user and associated with a product in thedatabase(s) 108A-B.

In one or more embodiments, if a user specifies that they are interestedin a category of products and they are interested in unique products aquery is produced (e.g., by the product determination module 106) thatretrieves products that include an associated category or descriptionthat sufficiently matches the category specified the user and alsoincludes an indication that the product is a unique product.

In one or more embodiments, a rating of a merchant's online store may bepresented to a user who may be interested in visiting the merchant'soffline store, such as by using one or more of the modules ordatabase(s) of the system 100. The rating of the merchant's online storemay influence whether the user is interested in visiting the merchant'soffline store. Thus, the online rating of the merchant may provide valueto the user shopping in the offline store. Similarly, in one or moreembodiments, a rating of a merchant's offline store may be presented toa user who may be interested in visiting the merchant's online store,such as by using one or more of the modules or database(s) of the system100. Thus, the rating of the merchant's offline store may provide valueto the user shopping on the online store. In one or more embodiments, arating for a merchant or a product may include one or more ratings froman online transaction and one or more ratings from an offlinetransaction. Thus, the online and offline presence of the merchant mayeach affect a user's perception of the merchant's business.

In one or more embodiments, a user may be interested in ordering aproduct offered from a merchant's offline store online, such as ininstances where the user does not want to travel with the item. The usercould have the product shipped to her home or other location throughordering the product from the merchant's online store. In this way, theuser may view or touch the product, discuss the product with people inthe geographical region, and/or discuss the product with the merchantbefore she buys the product. Thus, using the system 100, the merchant'soffline business may provide value to the merchant's online business. Aproduct may include a Quick Reference (QR) code or other indication ofwhere to find the product online so as to help the user access theproduct online. In some instances, the user may order the product onlinewhile still in the offline store, e.g., by using an e-commerceapplication running on her mobile device.

In one or more embodiments, the input module 102 may receive a user'srating and/or other descriptive information that may be included in areview of a merchant or product. This information may be stored in thedatabase 108A-B. The review may be of a merchant's online or offlinebusiness or product. The review may be used in determining a merchant'sonline or offline business rating or may be used to determine a ratingfor a product.

More use cases and details regarding the system 100 may be presentedbelow in the discussion of FIGS. 2-9.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a map 200 that indicates one or morelocations where one or more products unique to a geographical region aresold, in accord with one or more embodiments. The map 200 may bepresented to a user, such as using the output module 112. The map 200may be of a geographical region including a plurality of locations 202(e.g., a city, business, marketplace, etc.) indicated by the circles inFIG. 2. Not all of the locations 202 are labeled so as to not obscurethe view of FIG. 2. One or more of the locations 202 may be associatedwith a unique product. These locations 202 may be labeled with a marker204 that indicates that the unique product is available at the location202 or that the location 202 is associated with the unique product.

The map 200 may be an interactive map. The output module 112 may causeinformation about a location 202 or marker 204 to be displayed on and/ornear the map 200 in response to a user pointing to or selecting thelocation 202 or marker 204. In one or more embodiments, the pointing orselecting by the user may be accomplished using, e.g., a touch screen(e.g., a user touching, or performing a gesture, on the touch screen), avoice command, or a mouse point and/or click, among other techniques ofpointing or selecting. Markers 204 may be displayed on the map 200 atlocations 202 within a predetermined or specified distance from theuser's location 210. In the example shown in FIG. 2, the distance fromthe user corresponds to a radius of a circle 206 centered at the user'spresent location 210. Only markers 204 falling within that circle areshown on the map 200, in one or more embodiments. In other embodiments,the markers 204 are not necessarily limited to locations within apredetermined or specified distance from the user's current location,but may be displayed anywhere on the map, or within boundaries otherwisedetermined. For example, a map of a country, state, continent, or otherregion may be produced with one or more markers 204 displayed thereonirrespective of the distance from the user. Consider a scenario where auser is in the United States, but is planning a trip to India, but doesno know where in India they should visit. The user may query for uniqueproducts or experiences in India (e.g., that meet or do not meet certaincriteria) and a map of India with one or more Markers 204 may bedisplayed to the user. Such a map may aid a user in determining whichpart of India to visit.

The information about the location 202 or the marker 204 may include adistance from the user's current location, a name of the product, anindication of whether the product is unique (e.g., includes a GI tag), aquality of the product that makes the product eligible for the GI tag,an online or offline rating of a merchant associated with the GI tag, acontrol that, when selected, provides a user with directions to thelocation 202 associated with the marker 204, a cost of the uniqueproduct(s) associated with the marker 204, among other information.

One or more geographical features 208 may be displayed on the map 200.The geographical feature 208 may include a boundary between geographicalregions, such as shown in FIG. 2, or another geographical feature, suchas a mountain, body of water, topography, city, county, state, country,or continental border, among other geographical features. The map 200may include roads shown and/or labeled thereon.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating another map 300 that indicates one ormore locations where one or more products unique to a geographicalregion are sold, in accord with one or more embodiments. The map 300 maybe similar to the map 200, with the map 300 recommending locations 302to a user based on location density as well as the user's location 310.Not all of the locations 302 are labeled so as to not obscure the viewof FIG. 3. The location 302 may be similar to a combination of thelocation 202 and the marker 204, in that the location 302 may be alocation designation and an indication that the location 302 includes aproduct unique to the geographical region.

In the example of FIG. 3, the user may be recommended one or moreproducts or locations 302 that include a concentration of uniqueproducts that is above a specified threshold. In the example of FIG. 3,the products recommended to the user may be within the circle 306. Thecircle 306 may correspond to the locations 302 that are the densest inthe displayed region. Such a determination of products to recommendbased on the density is called “geo-fencing” herein. Note that althoughthe user is at the user location 310 and there are locations 302 thatmay include a unique product closer to the user's location than thelocations within the circle 306, the user may be recommended a uniqueproduct associated with a location 302 within the circle 306. Such anembodiment may alert a user as to a geographical region (e.g., theregion within the circle 306) that the user may visit to see a varietyof unique products with a relatively small amount of travel.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating yet another map 400 that indicates oneor more locations 402 where products unique to a geographical region maybe sold, in accord with one or more embodiments. The map 400 may besimilar to the map 300 of FIG. 3, with the map 400 including one or morerating designations 404 indicating an online or offline rating of amerchant associated with a corresponding location 402. Not all of thelocations 402 are labeled so as to not obscure the view of FIG. 4. Thelocation 402 may be similar to a combination of the location 202 and themarker 204. Different rating designation symbols may correspond todifferent levels of merchant ratings. For example, the ratingdesignation 404A may indicate a lower merchant rating than the ratingdesignation 404B, which may indicate a lower rating than the ratingdesignation 404C. In the example of FIG. 4, the number of points on thestar symbol that represents the rating designation 404A-C can indicate arating level. In one or more embodiments, a color, number, letter, otherindicator, or a combination thereof, can be used to designate a ratinglevel.

The rating designation 404 may be indicative of a rating of a merchant'sonline store or of a merchant's offline store. In one or moreembodiments, the rating designation 404 may be stored in the database108A-B and retrieved by one of the modules of the system 100. In one ormore embodiments, the rating designation may be determined by one of themodules of the system 100.

The rating designation 404 of a merchant may be indicative of acomposite score that may be determined based on ratings or feedbackregarding a buyer or re-seller interaction with the merchant. Thecomposite score may be determined based on combining individual ratingsfrom multiple buyers or sellers of the merchant's products. For example,a user with a positive experience with the merchant may record apositive rating or positive feedback and such feedback may increase thecomposite score. In another example, a user with a negative experiencewith the merchant may leave a negative rating or negative feedback andsuch a rating or feedback may decrease the composite score. A merchantwith a higher composite score may have a rating designation 404 that isdistinct from the rating designation of a merchant with lower compositescore. The rating designation 404 is indicative of the rating of themerchant (i.e. the merchant rating) as was previously discussed withregard to filtering and ranking products, such as may be accomplishedusing the rank module 110.

Displaying the rating designation 404 may help a user in determiningwhich merchant to visit. A user may decide to visit a merchant with arating designation 404, since the rating designation increases thelikelihood of a positive shopping experience. In an instance where therating designation 404 is of a merchant's online store and the ratingdesignation 404 influences a user to either visit or not visit amerchant's offline store, the merchant's online store performance mayprovide value (i.e., positive or negative value) to the merchant'soffline store. Similarly, a rating designation 404 of a merchant'soffline store may influence a user to either visit or not visit themerchant's online store, thus providing positive or negative value tothe merchant's online store. In this manner, the rating designation 404may help improve a quality of service from merchants both offline andonline.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a user interface 500 that may beused to provide a user with information related to a product unique to ageographical region, in accord with one or more embodiments. The UI 500may include one or more items 502A and/or 502B. The items 502A-B mayinclude a picture, video, or other visual indicator of the item (e.g., aproduct for sale, such as a unique product for sale). The UI 500 mayinclude a description 504A and/or 504B for each respective item 502Aand/or 502B. The description 504A-B may include a textual description ofthe item 502A-B. The UI 500 may include a textual or pictorialdescription of a location 506A and/or 506B of where a respective item502A and 502B may be purchased or originate from. The UI 500 may includea cost of purchasing 508A and/or 508B a respective item 502A and 502B.The cost of purchasing 508A-B may include a cost of purchasing the item502A-B immediately or may include a current cost of the item 502A-B,such as in an instance where the item 502A-B is the subject of anauction.

The UI 500 may include a GI indication 510. The GI indication 510indicates that the item 502A is a unique product. If an item does notinclude the GI indication 510, then the product may not be unique to aparticular region, or the product may not be registered under a GIregime. The GI indication 510 may include an indication of why the item502A is considered a unique product. The UI 500 may include a control512 that, in response to being selected, causes a description of why theitem is considered a unique product to be displayed. The UI 500 may alsoinclude the rating designation 404 of an online and/or offline merchantassociated with the item 502A-B (not shown in FIG. 5).

The UI 500 may include a control 514 that, when selected by a user,causes items to be displayed that are unique to a geographical region.The user may specify the geographical region or a category of items thatthe user is interested in viewing. In one or more embodiments, when thecontrol 514 is selected, only items that are unique to a geographicalregion are presented using the UI 500. In one or more embodiments, whenthe control 514 is selected, products unique to a geographical regionmay be presented to a user before items that are not unique to theparticular geographical region. In one or more embodiments, when thecontrol 514 is not selected, items unique to a particular geographicalregion do not receive preferential treatment over items that are notunique to a particular geographical region, such that no weight isapplied to the GI product or that non-GI products are not otherwisefiltered out or appear lower on the list as compared to GI products.Note that all GI products are unique, but not all unique products areregistered under a GI regime.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a method 600 for providinginformation related to a product unique to a geographical region, inaccord with one or more embodiments. The method 600 as illustratedincludes: determining a location of a user (e.g., based on user input,GPS data, the location of the user's mobile device as determined from anearby cell tower location, etc.), at operation 602, such as by usingthe location determination module 104; receive (e.g., from a database108A, 108B) data indicative of a product unique to a particulargeographical region using the determined location of the user, atoperation 604, such as by querying the database 108A-B using the productdetermination module 106; and provide information about the product anda merchant that sells the product, at operation 606, such as by usingthe output module 112. The merchant information and the productinformation may be associated with the product in the database 108A-B.

The operation at 606 may include providing contact information of themerchant, such as can be retrieved from the database 108A-B through aquery. The merchant may be a merchant that sells the product bothoffline and online. The operation at 606 may include providing a ratingof the merchant corresponding to services provided by the merchant inselling the product online, such as can be determined using the rankmodule 110 or other module by querying the database 108A-B.

The method 600 may include providing information indicative of a map ofthe particular region, augmented to include a symbol indicating ageneral location where the merchant sells a product of the one or moreproducts offline. The information indicative of the map can be retrievedform the databases 108A-B. The method 600 may include augmenting theinformation indicative of the map to include a second symbol, the secondsymbol indicative of a rating of the merchant corresponding to servicesprovided by the merchant in selling the product online. The outputmodule 112 can be configured to alter the data indicative of the map toinclude a symbol. The product unique to the particular region mayinclude a product covered by a geographical indication registration.

The method 600 may include providing a Uniform Resource Locator (URL)that points to an online domain where the merchant sells a product ofthe one or more products. The URL can be retrieved from the databases108A-B. The information indicative of a map of the particular regionincludes displaying only merchants that are within a specified distanceof a known origin of the product. The method 600 may include geo-fencinga plurality of locations of merchants, and the information indicative ofthe map of the particular region may include data indicative of thegeo-fenced locations of merchants. The method at 600 may includeproviding a recommendation for another product that is unique to thegeographical region. The method at 600 may include providing arecommendation for another product bought by another user that boughtthe product.

A few examples of use cases are presented herein. For example, a usertraveling in a particular region may be shown those goods (andmerchants) that offer one or more GI-certified products. In one or moreembodiments, the merchants may be merchants on a web service, such asthat provided by eBay. The merchants selected and the merchant'scorresponding rating may depend on their rating provided by users of theweb service who have interacted with the merchant (e.g., by purchasingone or more of their products). The traveler may visit the merchant'soffline store, touch and feel the product, and either purchase theproduct in the offline store or using the online store, such as tosimplify returning home with the product. In another embodiment, a userusing the online web service may be shown those goods that are from a GIregion, e.g., in response to the user's selection of an option to viewproducts unique to a region.

FIG. 7 illustrates a network diagram depicting a network environment700, in accord with one or more embodiments. The environment may includea client-server architecture configured for exchanging data over anetwork, such as can be used to implement one or more of the modules ofthe system 100. A networked system 702 may form a network-basedpublication system that provides server-side functionality, using anetwork 704 (e.g., the Internet or Wide Area Network (WAN)), to one ormore clients and devices. FIG. 7 further illustrates, for example, oneor both of a web client 706 (e.g., a web browser) and a programmaticclient 708 executing on devices 710 and 712. In one or more embodiments,the network environment 700 includes a marketplace system. In one ormore embodiments, the network environment 700 includes other types ofsystems, such as a social networking system, a matching system, arecommendation system, an electronic commerce (e-commerce) system, asearch system, or the like.

Each of the devices 710, 712 may be or include a computing device thatincludes at least a display and communication capabilities with thenetwork 704 to access the networked system 702, and often also one ormore processors and associated memory. The devices 710, 712 may includeremote devices, work stations, computers, general purpose computers,Internet appliances, hand-held devices, wireless devices, portabledevices, wearable computers, cellular or mobile phones, portable digitalassistants (PDAs), smart phones, tablets, ultrabooks, netbooks, laptops,desktops, multi-processor systems, microprocessor-based or programmableconsumer electronics, game consoles, set-top boxes, network PCs,mini-computers, or the like. Each of the devices 710, 712 maycommunicate with the network 704 using a wired or wireless connection.For example, one or more portions of the network 704 may be an ad hocnetwork, an intranet, an extranet, a virtual private network (VPN), alocal area network (LAN), a wireless LAN (WLAN), a wide area network(WAN), a wireless WAN (WWAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), aportion of the Internet, a portion of the Public Switched TelephoneNetwork (PSTN), a cellular telephone network, a wireless network, a WiFinetwork, a WiMax network, another type of network, or a combination oftwo or more such networks.

Each of the devices 710, 712 may include one or more applications (alsoreferred to as “apps”) such as, but not limited to, a web browser,messaging application, electronic mail (e-mail) application, ane-commerce site application (also referred to as a “marketplaceapplication”), and the like. In some embodiments, if the e-commerce siteapplication is included in a given one of the devices 710, 712, thenthis application is configured to locally provide the user interface andat least some of the functionalities with the application configured tocommunicate with the networked system 702, on an as needed basis, fordata and/or processing capabilities not locally available (e.g., accessto a database of items available for sale, to authenticate a user, toverify a method of payment). Conversely if the e-commerce siteapplication is not included in a given one of the devices 710, 712, thegiven one of the devices 710, 712 may use its web browser to access thee-commerce site (or a variant thereof) hosted on the networked system702. Although two devices 710, 712 are shown in FIG. 7, more or fewerthan two devices may be included in the network environment 700.

An Application Program Interface (API) server 714 and a web server 716are coupled to, and provide programmatic and web interfaces respectivelyto, one or more application servers 718. The application servers 718host one or more marketplace applications 720 and payment applications722. The application servers 718 are, in turn, shown to be coupled toone or more databases servers 724 that facilitate access to one or moredatabases 726 (such as, e.g., databases 108A-B, or similar databases).The modules of the system 100, for example the location determinationmodule 104, product determination module 106, output module 112, rankmodule 110, or the input module 102 may be implemented on theapplication servers 718 (e.g., as part of the marketplace application(s)720), for example.

The marketplace applications 720 may provide a number of e-commercefunctions and services to users that access the networked system 702.E-commerce functions/services may include a number of publisherfunctions and services (e.g., search, listing, content viewing, orpayment). For example, the marketplace applications 720 may provide anumber of services and functions to users for listing goods or services,listing offers for goods or services for sale, searching for goods andservices, facilitating transactions, and reviewing and providingfeedback about transactions and associated users. Additionally, themarketplace applications 720 may track and store data and metadatarelating to listings, transactions, and user interactions. In someembodiments, the marketplace applications 720 may publish or otherwiseprovide access to content items stored in the application servers 718 orthe databases 726 accessible to the application servers 718 or thedatabase servers 724.

The payment applications 722 may likewise provide a number of paymentservices and functions to users. The payment applications 722 may allowusers to accumulate value (e.g., in a commercial currency, such as theU.S. dollar, or a proprietary currency, such as “points”) in accounts,and then later to redeem the accumulated value for products or items(e.g., goods or services) that are made available using the marketplaceapplications 720. While the marketplace application 720 and paymentapplication 722 are shown in FIG. 7 to both form part of the networkedsystem 702, it will be appreciated that, in alternative embodiments, thepayment applications 722 may form part of a payment service that isseparate and distinct from the networked system 702. In otherembodiments, the payment applications 722 may be omitted from thenetworked system 702. In one or more embodiments, at least a portion ofthe marketplace applications 720 may be provided on the devices 710 or712.

Further, while the network environment 700 shown in FIG. 7 employs aclient-server architecture, embodiments of the present disclosure arenot limited to such an architecture, and may equally well findapplication in, for example, a distributed or peer-to-peer architecturesystem. The various the marketplace application 720 and paymentapplication 722 may also be implemented as standalone software programs,which do not necessarily have networking capabilities.

The web client 706 may access the marketplace application 720 andpayment application 722 using the web interface supported by the webserver 716. Similarly, the programmatic client 708 may access thevarious services and functions provided by the marketplace application720 and payment application 722 using the programmatic interfaceprovided by the API server 714. The programmatic client 708 may, forexample, be a seller application (e.g., the TurboLister applicationdeveloped by eBay Inc., of San Jose, Calif.) to enable sellers to authorand manage listings on the networked system 702 in an off-line manner,and to perform batch-mode communications between the programmatic client708 and the networked system 702.

FIG. 7 also illustrates a third party application 728, executing on athird party server 730, as having programmatic access to the networkedsystem 702 using the programmatic interface provided by the API server714. For example, the third party application 728 may, utilizinginformation retrieved from the networked system 702, support one or morefeatures or functions on a website hosted by the third party. The thirdparty website may, for example, provide one or more promotional,marketplace, or payment functions that are supported by the relevantapplications of the networked system 702.

In addition to the networked system 702 facilitating e-commerce orelectronic marketplace transactions, in some embodiments, the networkedsystem 702 (or portions thereof) may comprise a back-end system forcommerce environments, in general. For instance, the networked system702 (or portions thereof) may handle payment, promotions, inventorymanagement, or other support functions for storefront retailers. In anycase, the databases 726 may include data corresponding to inventoryavailable for commerce. Products, goods, services, or items comprisingthe inventory may be described and classified within the databases 726to facilitate inventory management, sales, and/or a user query, such asmay be received at the web server 716 or the API server 714. The querymay be transmitted through the device 710, 712, and/or 3^(rd) partyapplication server 730. The query may indicate that the user isinterested in a product unique to a geographical region and/or mayindicate a specific geographical region. The database server 724 maytranslate a query into a format compatible with the database 726 and mayexecute the query on the information stored in the database 726.

The database 726 may include information aggregated from a plurality ofdatabases that detail information regarding unique products. Thedatabase 726 can include information relating products by geographicalregion, category, merchant, unique characteristic(s) or otherinformation. The products catalogued in the database 726 can includeinformation as discussed with regard to the databases 108A-B.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of an example of a portion of a networkedsystem 702, in accord with one or more embodiments. The system 100 maybe implemented in the unique product engine 812 of the system 702. FIG.8 illustrates a block diagram showing components provided within thenetworked system 702 according to some embodiments. The networked system702 may be hosted on dedicated or shared server machines (not shown)that are communicatively coupled to enable communications between servermachines. The components themselves may be communicatively coupled(e.g., using appropriate interfaces) to each other and to various datasources, so as to allow information to be passed between theapplications or so as to allow the applications to share and accesscommon data. Furthermore, the components may access one or moredatabases 726 using the database servers 724.

The networked system 702 may provide a number of publishing, listing,and/or price-setting mechanisms whereby a seller (also referred to as a“first user”) may list (or publish information concerning) goods orservices for sale or barter, a buyer (also referred to as a “seconduser”) may express interest in or indicate a desire to purchase orbarter such goods or services, and a transaction (such as a trade) maybe completed pertaining to the goods or services. To this end, thenetworked system 702 may comprise at least one publication engine 802and one or more selling engine 804. The publication engine 802 maypublish information, such as item listings or product description pages,on the networked system 702. In one or more embodiments, the sellingengine 804 may comprise one or more fixed-price engines that supportfixed-price listing and price setting mechanisms and one or more auctionengines that support auction-format listing and price setting mechanisms(e.g., English, Dutch, Chinese, Double, Reverse auctions). The variousauction engines may also provide a number of features in support ofthese auction-format listings, such as a reserve price feature whereby aseller may specify a reserve price in connection with a listing and aproxy-bidding feature whereby a bidder may invoke automated proxybidding. The selling engine 804 may further comprise one or more dealengines that support merchant-generated offers for products andservices.

A listing engine 806 allows sellers to author listings of items orauthors to author publications. In one or more embodiments, the listingspertain to goods or services that a user (e.g., a seller) wishes totransact using the networked system 702. In some embodiments, thelistings may be an offer, deal, coupon, or discount for the good orservice. Each good or service is associated with a particular category.The listing engine 806 may receive listing data such as title,description, and aspect name/value pairs. Furthermore, each listing fora good or service may be assigned an item identifier. In otherembodiments, a user may create a listing that is an advertisement orother form of information publication. The listing information may thenbe stored to one or more storage devices coupled to the networked system702 (e.g., databases 726 or 108A-B). Listings also may comprise productdescription pages that display a product and information (e.g., producttitle, specifications, and reviews) associated with the product. In someembodiments, the product description page may include an aggregation ofitem listings that correspond to the product described on the productdescription page.

The listing engine 806 also may allow buyers to conveniently authorlistings or requests for items desired to be purchased. In someembodiments, the listings may pertain to goods or services that a user(e.g., a buyer) wishes to transact using the networked system 702. Eachgood or service is associated with a particular category. The listingengine 806 may receive as much or as little listing data, such as title,description, and aspect name/value pairs, that the buyer is aware ofabout the requested item. In some embodiments, the listing engine 806may parse the buyer's submitted item information and may completeincomplete portions of the listing. For example, if the buyer provides abrief description of a requested item, the listing engine 806 may parsethe description, extract key terms and use those key terms to make adetermination of the identity of the item. Using the determined itemidentity, the listing engine 806 may retrieve additional item detailsfor inclusion in the buyer item request. In some embodiments, thelisting engine 806 may assign an item identifier to each listing for agood or service.

In some embodiments, the listing engine 806 allows sellers to generateoffers for discounts on products or services. The listing engine 806 mayreceive listing data, such as the product or service being offered, aprice, a discount for the product or service, a time period for whichthe offer is valid, and so forth. In some embodiments, the listingengine 806 may permit sellers to generate offers from the sellers'mobile devices. The generated offers may be uploaded to the networkedsystem 702 for storage and tracking.

Searching the networked system 702 is facilitated by a searching engine808. For example, the searching engine 808 enables keyword queries oflistings published using the networked system 702. In exampleembodiments, the searching engine 808 receives a keyword query from adevice of a user and conducts a review of the storage device storing thelisting information. The review may enable compilation of a result setof listings that may be sorted and returned to the client device (e.g.,the device 710, 712) of the user. The searching engine 808 may recordthe query (e.g., keywords) and any subsequent user actions and behaviors(e.g., navigations, selections, or click-throughs).

The searching engine 808 also may perform a search based on a locationof the user (e.g., detected using GPS). A user may access the searchingengine 808 using a mobile device and generate a search query. Using thesearch query and the user's location, the searching engine 808 mayreturn relevant search results for products, services, offers, auctions,and so forth to the user. The searching engine 808 may identify relevantsearch results both in a list form and graphically on a map. Selectionof a graphical indicator on the map may provide additional detailsregarding the selected search result. In some embodiments, the user mayspecify, as part of the search query, a radius or distance from theuser's current location to limit search results. The searching engine808 also may perform a search based on an image. The image may be takenfrom a camera or imaging component of a client device 710 or 712 or maybe accessed from storage.

In a further example, a navigation engine 810 allows users to navigatethrough various categories, catalogs, or inventory data structuresaccording to which listings may be classified within the networkedsystem 702. For example, the navigation engine 810 allows a user tosuccessively navigate down a category tree comprising a hierarchy ofcategories (e.g., the category tree structure) until a particular set oflisting is reached. Various other navigation applications within thenavigation engine 810 may be provided to supplement the searching andbrowsing applications. The navigation engine 810 may record the varioususer actions (e.g., clicks) performed by the user in order to navigatedown the category tree.

Additional modules and engines associated with the networked system 702are described herein in further detail. Note that as used herein, anengine includes a plurality of modules electrically, communicatively, ormechanically coupled to operate in conjunction with one another. Itshould be appreciated that modules or engines may embody various aspectsof the details described below. For instance, a unique product enginemay be included in the networked system 702 to perform functions andoperations of the system 100 or other operations discussed herein.

FIG. 9 shows a diagrammatic representation of a machine in the exampleform of a computer system 900 within which a set of instructions, forcausing the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein, may be executed. At least a portion of the computersystem 900 may be included in, for example, any of the device 710,device 712, applications servers 718, API server 714, web server 716,database servers 724, third party server 730, the input module 102, thelocation determination module 104, the product determination module 106,the output module 112, the rank module 110, the publication engine 802,the selling engine 804, the listing engine 806, the searching engine808, the navigation engine 810, or the unique product engine 812. Inalternative embodiments, the machine operates as a standalone device ormay be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networkeddeployment, the machine may operate in the capacity of a server or adevice machine in server-client network environment, or as a peermachine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. Themachine may be a server computer, a client computer, a personal computer(PC), a tablet, a set-top box (STB), a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA),a smart phone, a cellular telephone, a web appliance, a network router,switch or bridge, or any machine capable of executing a set ofinstructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be takenby that machine. Further, while only a single machine is illustrated,the term “machine” shall also be taken to include any collection ofmachines that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets)of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein.

The example computer system 900 includes a processor 902 (e.g., acentral processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), orboth), a main memory 904 and a static memory 906, which communicate witheach other using a bus 908. The computer system 900 may further includea video display unit 910 (e.g., liquid crystal display (LCD), organiclight emitting diode (OLED), touch screen, or a cathode ray tube (CRT)).The computer system 900 also includes an alpha-numeric input device 912(e.g., a physical or virtual keyboard), a cursor control device 914(e.g., a mouse, a touch screen, a touchpad, a trackball, a trackpad), adrive unit 916, a signal generation device 918 (e.g., a speaker), and anetwork interface device 920.

The drive unit 916 includes a machine-readable medium 922 on which isstored one or more sets of instructions 924 (e.g., software) embodyingany one or more of the methodologies or functions described herein. Theinstructions 924 may also reside, completely or at least partially,within the main memory 904 and/or within the processor 902 duringexecution thereof by the computer system 900, the main memory 904 andthe processor 902 also constituting machine-readable media. Theinstructions 924 may further be transmitted or received over a network926 using the network interface device 920.

While the machine-readable medium 922 is shown in an example embodimentto be a single medium, the term “machine-readable medium” should betaken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralizedor distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) thatstore the one or more sets of instructions. The term “machine-readablemedium” shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable ofstoring, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution by themachine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of themethodologies of the present invention. Accordingly, a “machine-readablemedium” refers to a single storage apparatus or device, as well as“cloud-based” storage systems or storage networks that include multiplestorage apparatus or devices. The term “machine-readable medium” shallaccordingly be taken to include, but not be limited to, one or more datatangible (e.g., non-transitory) data repositories in the form of asolid-state memory, an optical medium, a magnetic medium, or anysuitable combination thereof.

Furthermore, the machine-readable medium is non-transitory in that itdoes not embody a propagating signal. However, labeling the tangiblemachine-readable medium as “non-transitory” should not be construed tomean that the medium is incapable of movement—the medium should beconsidered as being transportable from one physical location to another.Additionally, since the machine-readable medium is tangible, the mediummay be considered to be a machine-readable device.

It will be appreciated that, for clarity purposes, the above descriptiondescribes some embodiments with reference to different functional unitsor processors. However, it will be apparent that any suitabledistribution of functionality between different functional units,processors or domains may be used without detracting from the invention.For example, functionality illustrated to be performed by separateprocessors or controllers may be performed by the same processor orcontroller. Hence, references to specific functional units are only tobe seen as references to suitable means for providing the describedfunctionality, rather than indicative of a strict logical or physicalstructure or organization.

Certain embodiments described herein may be implemented as logic or anumber of modules, engines, components, or mechanisms. A module, engine,logic, component, or mechanism (collectively referred to as a “module”)may be a tangible unit capable of performing certain operations andconfigured or arranged in a certain manner. In certain exampleembodiments, one or more computer systems (e.g., a standalone, client,or server computer system) or one or more components of a computersystem (e.g., a processor or a group of processors) may be configured bysoftware (e.g., an application or application portion) or firmware (notethat software and firmware may generally be used interchangeably hereinas is known by a skilled artisan) as a module that operates to performcertain operations described herein.

In various embodiments, a module may be implemented mechanically orelectronically. For example, a module may comprise dedicated circuitryor logic that is permanently configured (e.g., within a special-purposeprocessor, application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or array) toperform certain operations. A module may also comprise programmablelogic or circuitry (e.g., as encompassed within a general-purposeprocessor or other programmable processor) that is temporarilyconfigured by software or firmware to perform certain operations. Itwill be appreciated that a decision to implement a module mechanically,in dedicated and permanently configured circuitry, or in temporarilyconfigured circuitry (e.g., configured by software) may be driven by,for example, cost, time, energy-usage, and package size considerations.

Accordingly, the term “module” should be understood to encompass atangible entity, be that an entity that is physically constructed,permanently configured (e.g., hardwired), non-transitory, or temporarilyconfigured (e.g., programmed) to operate in a certain manner or toperform certain operations described herein. Considering embodiments inwhich modules or components are temporarily configured (e.g.,programmed), each of the modules or components need not be configured orinstantiated at any one instance in time. For example, where the modulesor components comprise a general-purpose processor configured usingsoftware, the general-purpose processor may be configured as respectivedifferent modules at different times. Software may accordingly configurethe processor to constitute a particular module at one instance of timeand to constitute a different module at a different instance of time.

Modules may provide information to, and receive information from, othermodules. Accordingly, the described modules may be regarded as beingcommunicatively coupled. Where multiples of such modules existcontemporaneously, communications may be achieved through signaltransmission (e.g., over appropriate circuits and buses) that connectthe modules. In embodiments in which multiple modules are configured orinstantiated at different times, communications between such modules maybe achieved, for example, through the storage and retrieval ofinformation in memory structures to which the multiple modules haveaccess. For example, one module may perform an operation and store theoutput of that operation in a memory device to which it iscommunicatively coupled. A further module may then, at a later time,access the memory device to retrieve and process the stored output.Modules may also initiate communications with input or output devicesand may operate on a resource (e.g., a collection of information).

Although the present invention has been described in connection withsome embodiments, it is not intended to be limited to the specific formset forth herein. One skilled in the art would recognize that variousfeatures of the described embodiments may be combined in accordance withthe invention. Moreover, it will be appreciated that variousmodifications and alterations may be made by those skilled in the artwithout departing from the scope of the invention.

The Abstract is provided to allow the reader to quickly ascertain thenature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with theunderstanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scopeor meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing DetailedDescription, it may be seen that various features are grouped togetherin a single embodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure.This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting anintention that the claimed embodiments require more features than areexpressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claimsreflect, inventive subject matter lies in fewer than all features of asingle disclosed embodiment. Thus the following claims are herebyincorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing onits own as a separate embodiment.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: determining a location of auser; receiving information indicative of one or more products unique toa particular geographical region corresponding to the determinedlocation of the user, wherein each of the one or more products isoffered for sale in the particular region by one or more merchants; andproviding information about at least one of the products and about amerchant, from the one or more merchants, offering that product for salein the geographical region.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein providinginformation about the merchant includes providing contact information ofthe merchant.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the merchant offers theproduct for sale online and offline.
 4. The method of claim 3, whereinthe information about the merchant includes a rating of the merchantcorresponding to services provided by the merchant in selling theproduct online.
 5. The method of claim 3, further comprising providing aUniform Resource Locator (URL) that points to an online domain where themerchant sells the product.
 6. The method of claim 1, further comprisingproviding information indicative of a map of the particular regionaugmented to include a symbol indicating a general location where themerchant sells the product offline.
 7. The method of claim 6, whereinthe symbol indicates a rating of the merchant corresponding to servicesprovided by the merchant in selling the product online.
 8. The method ofclaim 6, wherein providing information indicative of a map of theparticular region includes displaying only merchants that are within aspecified distance of a known origin of the product.
 9. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the products unique to the particular region include aproduct covered by a geographical indication registration.
 10. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising providing a recommendation foranother product of the one or more products that (1) is unique to thegeographical region or (2) was also bought by another user that boughtthe product.
 11. A system comprising a plurality of modules implementedby one or more processors, the modules including: a locationdetermination module to determine a location of a user; a productdetermination module to receive information indicative of one or moreproducts unique to a particular geographical region, the particulargeographical region corresponding to the determined location of theuser, wherein each of the one or more products is offered for sale inthe particular region by a merchant of a plurality of merchants; and anoutput module to provide information about a merchant of the pluralityof merchants and a product of the one or more products, the productoffered for sale by the merchant.
 12. The system of claim 11, furthercomprising a rank module to rank the one or more products using at leastone of a rating of the product or a rating of the merchant.
 13. Thesystem of claim 11, wherein the merchant sells a product of the one ormore products online and offline, wherein the output module to provideinformation about a merchant of the plurality of merchants is configuredto provide contact information of the merchant and a rating of themerchant corresponding to services provided by the merchant in sellingthe product online.
 14. The system of claim 13, wherein the outputmodule is to provide information indicative of a map of the particularregion augmented to include a symbol indicating a general location of alocation where the merchant sells a product of the one or more productsoffline and augmented to include another symbol indicative of a ratingof the merchant corresponding to services provided by the merchant inselling the product online.
 15. The system of claim 14, wherein theinformation indicative of a map of the particular region displays onlymerchants that are within a specified distance of a known origin of theproduct.
 16. The system of claim 11, wherein the products unique to theparticular region include products covered by a geographical indicationregistration.
 17. A non-transitory machine-readable medium comprisinginstructions, which, when executed by a machine, configure the machineto perform operations comprising: determining a location of a user;receiving information indicative of one or more products unique to aparticular geographical region, the particular geographical regioncorresponding to the determined location of the user, wherein each ofthe one or more products is offered for sale in the particular region bya merchant of a plurality of merchants, wherein the products unique tothe particular region include products covered by a geographicalindication registration; and providing information about a merchant ofthe plurality of merchants and a product of the one or more products,the product offered for sale by the merchant.
 18. The machine-readablemedium of claim 17, further comprising instructions, which, whenexecuted by the machine, configure the machine to perform operationscomprising ranking the one or more products using a rating of theproduct and a rating of the merchant, and wherein the instructions forproviding information about a merchant of the plurality of merchants anda product of the one or more products include instructions for providinginformation about a product of the plurality of products that is rankedhigher than another product of the plurality of products.
 19. Themachine-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the merchant sells aproduct of the one or more products online and offline, wherein theinstructions for providing information about a merchant of the pluralityof merchants include instructions, which when executed by the machineconfigure the machine to provide contact information of the merchant anda rating of the merchant corresponding to services provided by themerchant in selling the product online.
 20. The machine-readable mediumof claim 19, further comprising instructions, which when executed by themachine, configure the machine to provide information indicative of amap of the particular region augmented to include a symbol indicating ageneral location of a location the merchant sells a product of the oneor more products offline and augmented to include another symbolindicative of a rating of the merchant corresponding to servicesprovided by the merchant in selling the product online.